


Somebodies

by halfeatenmoon



Category: Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi - Fandom, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Gen, Post-TLJ
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-01-05
Packaged: 2019-02-16 04:31:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13046544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/halfeatenmoon/pseuds/halfeatenmoon
Summary: Rose woke up because everything hurt.





	Somebodies

Rose woke up because everything hurt. Her face stung, her shoulders ached, and her legs were numb in some places and throbbing with pain in others. Her throat was raw. Even her eyes hurt, but she forced them open anyway. The last time she was conscious, she was in a burned out skimmer next to an enemy cannon. If she was still alive, she wanted to know how.

She was lying on a padded bench against a wall, with blankets tucked around her and the ceiling low above her head. A ship, for sure, too much metal and pannelling to be on land, and she could identify the hum of a hyperdrive engine anywhere. She fought to get an arm free, her muscles protesting, so she could roll over and get a better look around.

The lights were dim, but still on; she could make out the shapes of five or six people sleeping on makeshift bedding on the floor. A small ship, then, and definitely not a First Order craft where everything had its place. It was too shabby, too lived-in for their sterile tastes, and she doubted they'd leave so many prisoners together where they could plot. This place was strange to her, but it was safe.

Just rolling over had strained her sore muscles, and Rose had let out a soft groan as she moved. Moments later there was a figure in front of her, a young girl dressed in grey with a concerned frown on her face.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Rose said. Her voice came out as a croak. "Hurts."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that," she said, with a sad smile. "This ship wasn't meant for so many people."

"I didn't think there were so many of us left."

"It's a small ship."

Rose hadn't even had time to get her hopes up before they were crushed again. Nobody but their tiny band of survivors, and this stranger.

"Did you come to rescue us? Did you answer the General's call?"

"What call?" Rey shook her head. "I don't know what that's about. But I did come to rescue you. I'm Rey."

"Rey," Rose said, weakly. It hurt to smile, too, but she couldn't help herself. "Wow. Rey, the Jedi student? The one who beat Kylo Ren on Starkiller base?"

"Beat him twice now," Rey said, with a small smile.

" _Wow_."

Rey ducked her head to hide her face, but Rose could see her smile broadening into a grin. They sat there in silence for a moment. Companionable silence at first, when they were both strung out and tired and relieved, but Rose had never been that comfortable with breaks in conversation.

"Did I make it weird? It's just really cool that you're here. It's an honour."

Rey shook her head. "A couple of people have said that. I can't believe people think I'm that great."

"You'd better get used to it." It was hard to tell in the dark, but Rose thought Rey was blushing a little.

"It's just that... I mean a week ago I thought I was just a desert junker, you know? And even Luke... I never expected..." Rey paused and blinked for a moment. "Anyway. It doesn't matter. I just saw you were awake, and I wanted to say hi, and... and thank you."

"Thank _me_?"

"Yeah. I heard you saved Finn, back on Crait, and... I just wanted to say thank you."

_Finn_. He was the last person Rose saw before she passed out, and yet this was the first time she'd thought of him since she clawed her way back to consciousness. She jerked upwards and immediately fell back to the bed in pain. Rey's face creased up with worry and she put a hand on Rose's sternum to keep her down, calming and firm.

"Hold on there. It's okay. We don't want you to hurt yourself."

Rose groaned. "I know, I just remembered. Finn's okay? He's really okay?"

Rey smiled again, with so much warmth it was like watching the sun rise. She shifted her position next to Rose so she could see the rest of the room again, and gestured to the wall opposite them. With her eyes now adjusted to the gloom, she could see that one of the sleeping fighters in the room was Finn. There was Poe, sitting upright against the wall; his face looked troubled, but he was breathing deeply in sleep. And curled up on the floor with his head in Poe's lap was Finn, looking the most peaceful Rose had seen him yet. And more importantly,safe. Rose lay her head back down and let out a long, slow breath.

"And he's not hurt at all."

"No. This time, he got out unscathed."

Rey tentatively reached out to stroke her hair. It was awkward, but it felt nice, soothing, and Rose tried to make an encouraging hum so she'd keep going.

"So, yeah. I just wanted to say thanks for stopping him. I don't really know what I'd do if I came back and he wasn't here."

Rose coughed. "Well, it wasn't all heroics. I did have to stun him to stop him stealing an escape pod."

"He didn't mention that part," Rey said, dryly.

"Well... he changed his mind pretty quickly. I guess we all make mistakes. By the time we got to Crait, he did try to drive straight into a plasma cannon to save the Resistance."

"I'm glad he met you, then. For someone who ran away from the only life he's ever known, he has a lot of people who care about him."

"Yeah, he does. I'm glad. I hope he knows he's somebody." She made a noise that started like a chuckle and ended more like a sigh. "It's a terrible feeling being nobody."

Rose thought of the ships that landed in her home like they owned it, and took the fruits of their hard work by force without a hint of apology or repayment. She thought of the trading partners who did nothing to help, not when the First Order could cut them better deals. She thought of Paige, and of her own work down in the pipes, and how the General had welcomed them both equally, because both their jobs mattered.

"It's a terrible feeling," Rose echoed, "But everyone matters, here. Nobody who comes to the Resistance is nothing."

Rey flinched when she said it, and Rose felt a horrible panic. This was worse than meeting Finn and having to turn him in for desertion. It had felt awful enough meeting Finn and then having to stop him. She didn't realise things could get worse, but apparently she was so good at screwing up that she could meet her _other_  hero and immediately offend her.

"Oh no, oh no, I'm sorry," she said, waving a stiff, bandaged hand at Rey. "I'm so sorry, I don't know what I said but I'll take it back, just please don't cry."

"I'm not crying," Rey said, her eyes glued to her hands.

Rose knew better than to point out that she was clearly crying, actually. "Okay. You just seemed upset and I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to upset you, you're so great, you're a _hero,_ you know that? You should know that."

Rey shook her head, still hiding it in her hands. Between her injuries and the weird position, Rose could only reach part of Rey's arm, but she patted her as best she could while Rey took shuddering breaths and started to calm down. Finally, Rey took a deep breath and lifted her head, giving Rose a shaky smile.

"I'm sorry. I'm not really used to people saying things like that."

"That you're a hero?"

Rey fiddled with her sleeves, not quite meeting Rose's eyes. "I don't know what that means, really. I think _you're_ a hero."

" _Me_?"

She nodded.

"You're amazing, though, and I'm just..."

Rey laughed, a soft, scratchy laugh, and put a hand on Rose's shoulder. "I think we're going to keep going around in circles if we keep talking."

"We can both be heroes," said Rose, because even when she was injured and in awe, she was stubborn down to her boots.

"Yeah, okay. Let's do that." Rey put a hand on Rose's shoulder, firm and calming, the way she'd held Rose down when she tried to get up. "You must still be very tired. Do you feel okay to rest, now that you know where you are?"

Rose did feel very tired, suddenly, more than she had before. She didn't know whether it was the power of suggestion, having someone point it out, or whether Rey could summon the Force to make her sleep with only a touch of her hand.

"Yeah. Now that I know Finn's safe."

"Very safe," Rey said, with that small smile that Rose was starting to get used to. "Sleep, then, and heal up soon."

Rose could already feel herself sinking, like the easiest sleep ever, easier than should be possible on a rustbucket crammed full of people. But she still mustered enough strength to tap Rey's hand with her own.

"What about you?"

"I'll be here."

"Sleep," Rose insisted.

Rey hesitated. Rose could see that she was tired too, though, and she could see the moment that Rey decided not to argue. She slid down to the floor instead, resting her back against Rose's sleeping nook, the ends of her hair brushing against Rose's arm.

"Good night," Rose murmured, although she didn't know whether it was night or day. She was exhausted, but she was safe, and sleep was reaching for her with an irresistible pull. Even the pain didn't seem so bad any more, next to the need for rest. The last thing she heard before she went under again was Rey saying 'Good night' in return.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [nobodies (the ordinary heroes remix)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16083815) by [darlingargents](https://archiveofourown.org/users/darlingargents/pseuds/darlingargents)




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